The “prioritize popular things” school doesn’t account for issues like court expansion and impeachment where public opinion follows elites. If Dems unify, it’ll become a 50-50 issue. If they let polls determine their position it’ll remain underwater and democracy will collapse.
https://twitter.com/alexburnsNYT/status/1318534904473333766
This phenomenon is a bigger general problem in the context of McConnell’s strategy of reflexively denying the opposition votes for bills. His insight: unify the opposition and the governing party, obsessed with finding bipartisan cover, will splinter.
If Dems approach governing that way again, they won’t just leave themselves and the country at the mercy of illegitimate Republican courts. They’ll find that even the popular aspects of their agenda will lose popularity, and they’ll accomplish much less than they otherwise would.
A case in point. Republicans shamelessly unify around racing to confirm a SCOTUS nominee amid the election–an unpopular idea. GOP voters line up behind them 86-8. Democrats get it in their heads that full bore opposition is unpopular. Dem voters only OPPOSE the ACB push 67-13. 
Cowed by an unscrupulous opposition into not doing much opposition at all, an unpopular objective now takes the lead.
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